Stainer & Bell: Brian Wren

Brian Wren is a hymnwriter whose work appears in hymnals from all denoninations and traditions throughout the English-speaking world. His popular hymns include As man and woman, we were made and Dear Christ uplifted from the earth. Brian has his own website which can be found here.

Brian was the runner up in the international Millenium Hymn Competition awarded in February at St Paul's Cathedral, London. His hymn Hidden Christ, Alive For Ever was sung at St Paul's on 9th January 2000 as part of the Cathedral's 'Millenuim gift to the nation'.

Biographical Details

Born in London in 1936, Brian Wren studied at Oxford, taking degrees in Modern Languages and Theology, including a D. Phil for work on the Hebrew prophets.

After ordination, he was minister of a Congregational church in Essex, served as consultant to the British Council of Churches, and worked in the student-based world poverty campaign, Third World First.

Since 1983, Brian has followed a freelance ministry, helping worshippers, ministers, educators and musicians to improve skills, and deepen spirituality. Now living in the USA, Brian is on the United Reformed Church roll of ministers as serving overseas.

Brian Wren's copyrights are administered by Stainer & Bell Ltd. However for USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand they are handled by Hope Publishing Company. (hope@hopepublishing.com).

Publications

	Bring Many Names. 35 Hymns (1989) Ref. HP747 [Online Shop] This collection extends the availability of the corpus of Brian Wren's writing to include his work between 1986 and 1989, with associated music and notes.

	Christ Our Hope Ref. HP8222 [Online Shop] A collection of 33 new hymns and 6 re-issues. A CD of songs from the book is also available (Ref. PP005).

	Faith Renewed. Ealier hymns revised (1995) Ref. HP1482 [Online Shop] This 1995 collection contains the best of the old and the best of the new. Dr Wren has updated a number of his earlier hymns and mixed these with the new texts he has written since 1992. All appear as poetry and with many new musical settings as well.

	New Beginnings. 30 Hymns (1993) Ref. HP742 [Online Shop] Here we have a further 33 texts from Brian Wren, the latest written in 1992, with associated music and notes. Brian Wren has a special concern that tunes should be good matches for words. In these collections, he provides a few himself, and introduces us to the creativity of many contemporary composers.

	Piece Together Praise. Poems and Collected Hymns Theologically arranged Re. B835 [Online Shop] Sensitive to the diversity of faith and worship in our modern world, Brian Wren here draws together the many strands of his experience as a hymn writer. Subtitled "A Theological Journey", and conceived with the needs of worship planners and private readers in mind, this innovative book pieces together its contents in the manner of the patterned fabric quilts traditional to the Dakota area of North America.

	Praising a Mystery. 30 Hymns (1986) Ref. HP749 [Online Shop] 30 hymn texts written between 1983 and 1985 by this British-born author, together with his background notes and mostly with new musical settings.

	Tell the Good News! Volume 2. Worship Songs. Easter: Before and After. Book Ref. PP003 - [Online Shop] CD Ref. PP004 - [Online Shop] Tell the Good News! is a collection of 26 songs for worship centred around Easter, but grouped under the headings 'Gathering Songs', 'Following Jesus Christ', 'In the Power of the Spirit' and 'Trinity Praise'.

	Visions & Revisions. 33 New Hymns & 7 Revisions (1998) Ref. HP1590 [Online Shop] Brian Wren relates the title of this recent collection to T.S. Eliot's description of the writing process as involving a hundred visions and revisions. The book has words and music for 33 new hymns written between 1993 and 1997, and seven earlier texts with new tunes worth sharing more widely. Five hymns are published here for the first time. The rest are also published as poems without music in Piece Together Praise.

	We Can Be Messengers. Volume 1. Worship Songs. Christmas before and After. Book Ref. PP001 - [Online Shop] CD Ref. PP002 - [Online Shop] We Can Be Messengers is a collection of 15 songs for worship, from Thanksgiving to Epiphany. Designed for singing by congregations, We Can Be Messengers includes simple rounds, intergenerational songs with children in mind, songs for Advent in each lectionary year, and fresh songs for the Christmas season.